Note to Self, Stop Taking Notes
by Allauhna
Summary: Alas, girl goes to Middle Earth story, but she's stange and mysterious with a secret past... wait no she just likes geology. Please RR, i'll give you... Leoglas,maybe :)
1. Stop Exploring Abandoned Borax Mines

Note to Self, Stop Taking Notes

Disclaimer: I do not own anything relating to LotR. Not yet that is. Bwah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

Summary/ Author's Notes: Yes, it has been done; a girl goes to Middle Earth. It is something about the ' Stranger in the Village' stories that we just cannot tear from. Any who…in this story in our world LotR does not exist in book or movie. I am not sure what will happen in the story, that is all up to you beautiful reviewers. I have two other stories I am writing and based on reviews will determine which ones I will devote more time to. So, let the story begin…

' Note to self… stop exploring abandon Borax mines. It only leads to trouble.'

She had been walking in the pitch-dark corridor of the mine for nearly twenty minutes now. With her right hand glued to the wall, she inched along, hoping not to fall or hit her head. It had all started with a simply geology trip from her college. This semester they went to Death Valley and started with a hike in a small badland called Gower's Gulch. Along the gulch were small abandon mines but one of them she had reached first.

The opening was about six feet off the ground with a steep slop leading up to it. She climbed it and went inside. It was only 30 feet deep but as she walked back, she saw a dark corridor off to her left. She peered into the darkness and contemplated on whether she should wait for someone with a flashlight to show up; she had forgotten hers on the seat in the van. In the end, her curiosity and impatience won and she started down the way, with her right hand sliding along the wall. After a few feet, she heard her friend call out to her. She turned right and started heading back but hit a wall. Her hands searched the wall before her to the left and right; the wall had formed blocking her exit. She slammed her hands against into it calling out for her friend but there was nothing but the deafening silence and darkness. She slid down the wall shaking and after minutes or hours; she deiced to delve further into the darkness.

For twenty minutes she walked, in a straight path with no slopes until finally it seemed that the corridor began crawling upward. Her breath quicken as the path made a sharp turn left. Ahead of her, the air became lighter as a soft breeze blew in her hair. It took her entire will not to run to the light.

" It wouldn't be good to run and fall to my death yet," she spoke aloud.

The light grew brighter and lit the corridor. Since there were no great chasms or jagged overhanging rocks in her way, she sprinted to it. She looked up and saw that the light was coming from a hole a few feet above her head. She took her pack and threw it up through the hole then reached up and pulled herself out. She sat at the edge of the hole with her legs dangling in it still as she looked around. Tall lush green trees stood around the clearing she entered, a bit of mist clung to the trunks and wisped around the light breeze. The air smelt wet and green; she shook her head.

" There is no way in hell that I could've gone from the badlands to a… taiga through one mine," she muttered and sighed. She stood turning around and froze in her place. A small boy with reddish hair, sharp features, and a scarf around his neck started motionless at her. She looked at his large hairy feet and slightly pointed ears under the mop of hair. They both screamed.


	2. Don’t fall onto sharp pieces of metal

Note to Self, Stop Taking Notes

Disclaimer: I do not own anything relating to LotR. Not yet that is. Bwah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

Author's Note: I'm sorry it took me so long, I was going to update over the weekend but alas I was in the Mojave, trying to get to Middle Earth. Since it didn't work, I'm back here. One day… one day! NB: If it's in italics it's elvish. Thank you to my reviewers! Antimortal, Elven-elements, Jupiter's Light, and Shimmergloom. It makes me happy when I get reviews.

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Chapter Two: …Don't fall onto sharp pieces of metal

She stumbled as she backed away from the retreating figure; the small person had run off into the woods yelling. She crawled to her pack, searching through it with shaking hands. She let out a small sigh of relief when her hand closed around the hilt of a small dagger.

" Get up slowly," a commanding male voice called from behind her. She froze in her spot and slowly drew the blade. She held it in front of her, trying to calm her breathing.

" Do you not understand me? Rise!" the voice said, he was closer to her now.

' This is so not even happening,' she thought. " Think happy thoughts and maybe they'll go away," she muttered repeatedly.

She heard the leaves and other forest debris move behind her; he was getting closer. ' Whose getting closer silly,' she yelled at herself, ' Remember, if you can't see it, it's not there. Therefore there is no man behind you!' She felt a hand grab her shoulder, with a yelp, she tried to crawl away but two arms grabbed her and pulled her back. She kicked and struggled, dropping her knife in the process, but the arms held her in place against the tall man.

" Let me go," she yelled, out of the corner of her eye she saw another man walk in front of her. He was tall with light reddish-brown hair that just reached her shoulders; his goatee was the same color as his hair. She looked at him up and down, noting his clothes and large sword, unsheathed in his hand. ' I think the Ren Faire lost some valuable players,' she thought.

" We will let you go when you tell us who you are and what you are doing alone in the woods," he said to her. She still struggled against the other man.

" If you let me go, I'll tell ya anything you want," she said as nicely as she could.

" There is no negotiating in this matter milady," the man who was holding her said in her ear. She gulped and the breath quickened. ' Oh scheiße! What am I going to do? These people are friggin' crazy. They'll probably sacrifice me to their unholy demon Ren Faire Gods or… I don't want to think about that.' She reached a conclusion in her mind, there was only one thing she could do. She kicked back as hard as she could into the man's shin, when she felt his grip loosen; she elbowed him and pulled away. She veered to the right, away from the other man's pointy sharp sword but found an arrow aimed at her by a tall blonde with pointed ears. She yelped in shock and fell back, slicing her hand on her dagger. Her wound began to bleed freely as she held it to her chest, going pale in the face. She focused on the cut, forgetting that the three men were surrounding her. The man who had been holding her knelt down and touched her arm lightly; she jumped and started to inch away.

"Milady, please. Let me see your wound," he said, " It would not be well for you to suffer more injuries."

She glared at him. His hair was much darker than the others were and he had pure grey eyes, but he looked scruffy. She hesitated, holding her hand away from him as the blood dripped down her arm. She looked up at the blonde who no longer had his arrow pointed at her, but he had not yet put it away either. Gulping, she reluctantly gave her hand to the grey-eyed man.

He took her hand gently as she closed her eyes tightly. Turning her hand softly he examined the cut, it was long, running down her palm and wrist. What seemed to concern him was the amount of blood and her shivering. He saw that she only wore a short-sleeved black shirt made of some lightweight, gauzy material and odd dark blue pants. Her eyes were still shut and her head was turned away. He took her chin and gently turned her head towards him.

" Now, listen," he started, " You have loss quite a bit of blood and need to get warm, but I cannot take you to our camp till we know of you purpose here and who you are, at the least. Understand?" He looked her in the eyes and she nodded.

" I don't know where I am," she said softly.

" What do you mean?" the archer asked.

" I mean just that. I don't know where this place is, how I got here, or… yeah. I'm dizzy," she took a deep breath.

" Your name milady, do you know that?" the man with the sword asked.

She hesitated, " Katrina."

" Well, Lady Katrina, you need to get warm."

" It still may be dangerous to allow her in to come with us," the blonde interjected.

" It's my fault," a small voice said from behind a tree. The same small person who she saw first came out.

" Pippin, you should be with the others," the grey-eyed man said. She watched as the small person walked out towards her.

" I'm sorry for startling you Miss, I didn't see that you were just a girl."

" Hey, that's okay. It's not everyday you see someone just appear from hole in the ground," she smiled, though biting her tongue. ' Just a girl, I'm twice your height! Man, I wish those trees would stop spinning.'

" Pippin, go back to the others and stay there," the grey-eyed man said. Pippin went off back into the forest. The man looked back to her, " What is this hole you speak of?"

" Huh-what? Oh," she pointed to where her pack lay, " It's over there." The blonde walked over and knelt next to the hole; he looked back to her, " Are you sure?"

" I don't see any other holes with a backpack next to them, so yeah, I'm sure."

" It is not even three feet deep. I doubt that you would have even had been able to hide here."

" What?! Let me see," she attempted to stand up but fell down to the ground.

" No, we need to get you warm," the grey-eyed man said.

" Wait…wait… I have this weird little personality thing I have where… ummm… what was I saying?" she furrowed her eyebrows, " Oh yeah… what are your names? It'd be kinda… well…oh what's the word… foolish, yes foolish to just go follow strangers, male strangers might I add, into a forest without knowing their names at least. Then again you could just give me fake names or I dunno…" she trailed off, " Dizzy again."

The three looked at each other, the blonde shook his head while the light haired man gave a scrap of clothe to the grey-eyed man, who held it tightly to her wrist and palm. The light haired man sat closer to her, " Forgive us for now introducing ourselves earlier, I am Boromir son of Denethor." He took one of her arms.

" I am Aragorn of Arathorn," he took her wounded arm. They gently lifted her off the ground and begin walking, Aragorn pointed to the blonde, " That is Legolas of Mirkwood."

" Did you say Lakewood?" she asked.

" No I said Mirkwood."

" Oh, I live near Lakewood," she said distantly.

" I'm Peregrine Took," said Pippin from behind the group. Aragorn sighed.

" Pippin, I thought you were told to go back," Boromir said.

" I started to but I figured it would be best if we all left together."

" So are you Peregrin or Pippin?" she asked.

" Oh everyone just calls me Pippin, by the way I grabbed your pack. They would have forgotten it. What do you have in here, it is quiet heavy?"

" Ummm I don't know," she stumbled a bit.

" Pippin, walk up here with me," Legolas said. He smiled at the little person and took the pack from him. They walked in front of Boromir and Aragorn who were on either side of Katrina. After walking a bit, she began to stumble over each obstacle in her way such as blades of grass. Aragorn finally picked her up in his arms. She had started to protest but held her head instead. " Warning next time," she muttered.

After a few minutes, they reached another clearing, a bit larger than the one she had been in. There were three other small people like Pippin, one other short man with red beard and hair, and then a tall old man dressed in grey. 

" So this is what gave Pip such a fright," one of the small people with dark hair commented, " She is just a girl."

' Don't Katrina,' she told herself, ' Just do what you always do… bottle it up inside until you explode in a blaze of glory… or a massacre, same thing when you thing about it. I feel sick.'

" I want down now please," she told Aragorn. He walked over to where the old man was sitting and sat her down. He knelt next to her and pulled his pack nearer to them.

" What happened to her Strider?" the dark-haired hobbit asked, looking at the blood on her arm.

" An example of what happens when you leave sharp metals on the ground," she said before Aragorn could answer.

" Get a small fire going and boil some water," Aragorn said. He took his water skin and some strips of cloth. Taking her hand carefully, he poured water over the wound and began cleaning it. She turned her head away and saw that the small men and gathered near her.

" Umm…" she started, " Why are you so… well… short?"

" We're hobbits," said Pippin.

" Oh okay, that explains everything," she stated, wincing as Aragorn poured more water on the wound.

" So you know of hobbits, milady," the dark-haired hobbit said.

" Actually I was ouch!" she flinched her arm while Aragorn muttered an apology. " I was being sarcastic."

" I see. Well let me introduce myself. I am Frodo Baggins and this is my gardener Samwise Gamgee, my cousins Merry and… I suppose that you have already met Pippin." She nodded. He pointed to the old man, " This is Gandalf the Grey," he then gestured to the short man with the red beard, " That is Gimli son of Glóin. He is a dwarf."

" Well, it's quite a motley crew you've got going on, ow, here," she winced. Boromir and Gimli had gotten the fire started while Legolas got some water from a nearby stream. Sam went over and took a pot off the ponies pack. She had not noticed that pony being there before.

" What's the ponies name?" she asked.

" Oh why this is Bill," Sam answered. He started to boil the water.

" What is your name?" Frodo asked.

" Katrina." They looked at her expecting more. " Oh ummm Katrina Barnard."

" That's an odd name," Gimli comment, " What does it mean?"

" It means, well, there are three possible origins of the meaning," she paused, thinking, " One origin is from the word 'katharos' which is Greek for, ouch putain de merde that's hot," she tried to pull her arm away.

" Lady Katrina, the hot water will help clean the wound further, you do not what it to become infected do you?" Aragorn explained calmly, holding her arm. She relaxed some.

" Aragorn that cut looks quite deep," Gandalf said.

" I know," he looked at the wound, thinking.

" No," she stated.

" No what?"

" I know what you are thinking and no!"

" At least you wrist."

" Hell no!"

" Milady your language. Even if we wrap it tightly I fear it may reopen."

" I hate needles, you'll never catch me sewing."

Aragorn sighed, " Would you rather have an infected wound that bleeds often?"

" No," she said weakly.

" That is what I thought. _Legolas, I need her distracted for this_."

__

Legolas nodded and went to Boromir and Gimli. He spoke quietly to them then the three of them came over and sat next to her, along with the hobbits. Boromir sat closest to her and put his thick cloak around her shoulders. Muttering thanks, she looked at all of them, not noticing Aragorn taking out a needle and strong thread. She shifted in her spot, becoming nervous.

" Sam," Gandalf called, " Go ahead and start dinner, we will stay here tonight and through till mid-morning tomorrow. I believe we can afford a bit of rest and I wish to know where are young friend here is from."

" Well I'm from Long Beach," she stated.

" Where's that?" Merry asked. Aragorn walked over to the fire.

"LA County."

" LA?"

" Los Angeles."

" Where's that?" Pippin asked.

" California."

" Where's that?"

She rolled her eyes as Aragorn sat next to her again, he look over to Boromir and nodded. " It's the third largest state in the US."

" US?"

" By the…" she took a deep breathe, " The United States of America."

" Where's that?"

She was about to answer when she felt the needle pierce her arm. She yelled loudly and looked down at it. Boromir watched as her face paled and how she was beginning to shake some. He put his arm around her shoulders to hold her in place, " Tell us about this US."

She looked at all of them, " You've never heard of it."

They all shook their heads no. Her pulsed began to race and she felt Aragorn pull on the thread that was in her skin. She started to breathe erratically and pulled her arm away from Aragorn, trying to stand up.

" Calm down," Boromir said soothingly to her, holding her, " Is there a reason why we should know of such a place?"

" Well yeah, I mean it's just the most powerful nation in the world. Everyone knows that!"

" If that were so, then why do we not know of it?" Legolas asked.

" Maybe you're all crazy and have been here hiding in the forest."

" I assure you Lady Katrina, that is not the case," Aragorn said entering the needle into her skin again. She gasped and held her breath.

" Where were you before you came to be here?" Gandalf asked, walking to seat next to Boromir in order to draw her attention away from her arm.

" An abandon borax mine."

" What were you doing in a mine, an abandon mine no less?" Legolas asked shocked.

" Well looking for borax obviously."

" What is this `borax` lass? I haven't heard of it," Gimli inquired.

" It is a mineral that is used as a flux."

" Flux?" Merry asked.

" Yeah, a flux is…I don't feel good." She closed her eyes, feeling the thread being pulled in her skin and the needle penetrating her skin. 

" You are doing very well Katrina, almost finished," Aragorn said. 

" Note to self… don't fall onto sharp pieces of metal."

*~*~*~*

Aragorn had finished tending her wounds; she had given him a strange wrap that she called `gauze and ace bandage`. He went ahead and dressed her wound with it while she slipped off to sleep. He laid her, with the help of Boromir, down closer to the fire and wrapped Boromir's cloak and his own blanket around her. As she slept, the hobbits watched her while they ate. Aragorn went over to Gandalf and sat next to him, pulling out his pipe.

" She is oddly dressed, not at all appropriate, and her speech is quite different than anything I have heard," Gandalf stated, pulling out his own pipe.

" Do you believe her to be from this `long beach' or `US`?" he asked.

" Do you?"

Aragorn looked thoughtfully at the sleeping figure of the girl, he let out a long stream of smoke, " Perhaps, I sense no malice from her though she is not exactly harmless." He rubbed his side where she had elbowed him. Gandalf laughed a little.

" How is her wound?"

" It will heal, but it was deeper than I had first thought and she has lost a fair amount of blood."

" I do not think she is a spy," Gandalf said after a pause, " nor do I believe her to be of the world we know."

" So you believe her story."

" Yes, the reason I wanted her to speak of herself while you were tending her wound was not just to distract her."

Aragorn waited from him to finish but Gandalf did not, though he knew what he was getting at. Her fear was evident when they first encountered her and again when he was sewing up her wound, fear tends to distract from lies. Even when she was wounded she was reluctant to go with them.

" If she is truly from not from here, what is she doing here? What are we to do with her?" Aragorn asked, though he believed her to be a stranger in these lands and not a spy, the idea of her being from another world seemed unlikely.

" We are two weeks from Rivendell and cannot turn back. I do not think that Lady Katrina would be able to make it on her own," Gandalf sighed, " She will have to journey with us until we reach a place that she could stay, though she will not do well anywhere I fear."

" How could she be from another world? She must be from somewhere in Arda."

" We will question her more when she awakens, but for now you should rest Aragorn. Take advantage of a time like this, for there may be a time where you cannot." With that, Gandalf leaned back more and rested his eyes. Aragorn got up and sat next to Legolas who was near the fire discussing with Boromir over whether the girl was crazy or a spy. Legolas leaned toward spy, Boromir toward crazy.

" What did Gandalf say?" Boromir asked Aragorn as he sat down. Aragorn sighed and put out his pipe.

" He believes her to be from another world," he said looking at her.

" Another world!" Boromir said shocked, " How can that be?"

" She does have a strange feeling about her," Legolas commented. Pippin came over with plates of food for them, plus an extra one.

" What should I do with Lady Katrina's meal," he asked, " Do you think she will wake? When she does she'll be very hungry."

" She will not wake till dawn I suspect," Aragorn said. " Go on and place her food by the fire to keep it warm if she does indeed wake."

" Is she to be traveling with us?" Gimli asked across the fire, " It would be quite dangerous for such a young lass, wounded one at that."

" Gandalf says that she must, just until we find a suitable place for her to stay," Aragorn replied.

" What suitable place is there for a young girl with no kin," Legolas asked, " And if she is from another world…"

" I know Legolas," Aragorn sighed.

" It seems she will be with us for awhile. What do you think her purpose here?"

" She's just a girl, Elf. Your kind are always so suspicious," Gimli said.

" As yours is susceptible."

" Enough, no fighting from you two tonight," Boromir said. The Elf and Dwarf went silent.

" Perhaps if we pass thru Lothlorien, if our path takes us there, she may be able to find the proper help," Aragorn said. " In the morning perhaps we will learn more from her, rest now."


	3. I Think She Has ADD

Author's Notes: I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry. It took me forever to update, I'm such a bad naughty person. I take an oath to keep the updates within a month or less of each other. Even if I lose 6 fingers and an eye. That'd be painfully. Thank you so much for the reviews, I read them and I can stop smiling, then my face hurts but it's the good kind of hurt.

Disclaimer: I own nothing, except the world. Well one day.

Chapter Three: I Think She Has ADD

The sun had risen but the thick fog kept the morning still dark. The air had become more moist and cold throughout the night. Aragorn had taken the first watch, then Gandalf, Boromir, and finally Legolas. As the sun rose higher above the horizon, he jumped down from the tree he had climbed for his watch. He walked over to where the others slept. All the hobbits lay in a heap near Gandalf who was lying asleep on his side. On the other side of the hobbits sat Gimli against a tree snoring softly then near where the fire had been lay the girl wrapped in Boromir's cloak and Aragorn's blanket. Behind her lay Boromir on his side, facing her and before her was Aragorn lying on his back. Legolas walked closer to Katrina, though all he could see of her were a few strands of hair that had escaped from under the blanket. He knelt down and watched her, the steady rise and fall of her breath through the covers and slight movements of her legs and hands. He was concerned about her sudden appearance and the idea that she could be from another world. That would mean that someone must have sent her here, but whom and for what purpose. As he pondered about the girl, one of her arms slowly pushed out of the covers as her whole body stretched, he heard a muffled yawn and then saw her go completely still. She suddenly sat up straight looking at her bandaged wrist then to the trees covered in fog. She saw Boromir asleep at her side and she turned her had and found Legolas not but two feet away from her watching her intently. She jumped up in surprise, he stood slowly.

" Lady Katrina, are you well? Forgive me if I have startled you."

She looked at the other sleeping figures and her wrist then back to Legolas. Her hands were shaking a bit, " I thought it was a dream, that I hit my head or something," she said softly, clutching her bare arms. Legolas picked up Boromir's cloak and walked to her slowly.

" What did you think was a dream?" he asked, watching her behavior that was beginning to resemble a cornered deer. She backed away from him.

" I thought this was a dream, all of this. It can't be," her breathing sped up as she shivered more in the cold forest. Legolas stepped closer, holding out the cloak but the stepped farther away, backing into a tree.

" I am sorry Lady Katrina but this is all quite real; please take the cloak, you are not dressed for the weather," he spoke softly to her.

" Exactly," she stated, mainly to herself as she felt the tree behind her. She started to go around it. " I am dressed for a nice mid-morning hike in Death Valley. How do I go from desert to forest so quickly, it doesn't make sense," she trailed off, walking away. Legolas watched her, stepping closer.

" Perhaps it will become clearer when Gandalf awakens." His voice brought her head up and her mind out of her thoughts. He reached out and gently took hold of her forearm. She pulled away some but he held tight and put the cloak around her with the other. " Until then, you should rest and keep warm." He led her back to where she had been sleeping. She sat on the blanket quietly trying not to wake the others. She pulled the fur-lined cloak tighter looking around the campground then to Legolas, " Where's my backpack?"

He went over to where Gandalf slept and picked up her pack, and then walked towards her. " What is this 'Death Valley' you spoke of? It does not seem to sound pleasant."

She took the pack and opened the largest part. " It is just a name of a special part of the Mojave desert." She pulled out a dark-brown fleece pullover and slipped it on carefully. " Much better, much warmer now. Why didn't I think of that last night?" she muttered to herself. " Oh yeah, blood loss. Now for food." She started to dig deeper into her pack when she suddenly cried out. Both Aragorn and Boromir leap to their feet, weapons ready, even Legolas had his bow drawn, they saw Katrina clutching her wrist to her chest with her eyes shut tightly. She was muttering, " Schiße, schiße, schiße. Oh that hurts, need Vicodin now, or a morphine drip would be nice."

The three were relieved and lowered their weapons, Legolas went to her as Aragorn knelt down and gently tried to pry her arm away. She opened her eyes and glared at him.

" Now Lady Katrina I need to see your wrist," Aragorn said.

" First, before you make it feel worse could someone grab the clear bottle and smaller pack form my back pack," she said gesturing to the open pack. Boromir knelt next to her and pulled the pack closer to him. He reached in slowly and pulled out a plastic water bottle. Katrina nodded and took it from him with her good hand, and then he reached in again and pulled out a small blue-green make-up case.

" Okay now unzip it," she directed.

" Unzip?" He looked at her oddly.

" Pull that black tab towards you." He did and the first thing to fall out was a small white bottle. She reached for it with her good hand. " Thank you."

She opened the bottle easily because she broke the child safety lock earlier. She spilled three green liquid gel caps into her hand and popped them in her mouth, then took a swig of the water and swallowed the pills.

" What were those?" Legolas asked.

" Analgesic."

" What?"

" A painkiller, medicine to… alleviate pain," she slowly gave her wrist to Aragorn. She winced as he took it; Boromir put his hand on her shoulder while Legolas looked on watching her and her pack. She noticed the attention and shifted a bit in her seat. Aragorn unwrapped the bandage and removed the gauze. 

" It is not infected as if yet," he looked at it closely, gently examining it.

" Yippee!" she said, " Can I have food now?"

" Let me rebind the wound, and stop moving." She stopped moving.

" Could I have a little space then? Normally I wouldn't mind the attention of des beaux morceaux but I'm feelin' a bit edgy," she gestured to the three of them. Legolas went over to the hobbits where Sam had just awoken while Boromir took his hand from her shoulder and sat back, but did not move away too much. Aragorn cleaned the wound some then rebandaged it. He turned and set about relighting the fire so that Sam could start fixing breakfast. She looked around again and shivered.

" Of all the places I could find myself it had to be a cold foggy forest," she muttered. " Why not a nice tropical resort or coastal chaparral? Where are we exactly?"

" We are a few weeks from Rivendale," Gandalf answered, walking towards her.

" Riverside?"

" No, Rivendale."

" Oh."

" Now tell me Lady Katrina," he took a seat on a rock near her, " Where were you before you came to be here? Legolas tells me that you spoke of a 'Death Valley'. Why were you traveling in such a place?"

" Really it's not as bad as it sounds. It is the low point of elevation in North America, a very deep graben… I mean basin in the Mojave Desert. I was in a place called Gower's Gulch."

" And why were you traveling in this gulch in the desert?"

" I was with my geology class… we go out to the desert because of all the great geological examples, its field experience."

" Geology, I have not heard of such a thing before."

" It's the study of the Earth, mainly its formations and how they are… formed. Also rock and minerals."

" Study rocks, you say," Gimli walked over to her.

" Yeah, it's fun, specially metamorphic rocks. They are always so pretty."

" I never knew that the females of the race of men were interested in this craft. Though I must say it is a welcomed thought," Gimli stay next to her. She smiled.

" When I was… fourteen, my science teacher got me interested in it and… wait, 'race of men'? What other races are there?"

" Well for one you are a conversation with a dwarf and a wizard at the moment."

" You're a dwarf!" She looked to Gandalf, " And you're a wizard?" They both nodded. " I see, and there are probably elves, and dragons and such as well in this place."

" Sadly, yes. There are elves, one is right there," Gimli pointed to Legolas.

" And must not forget hobbits, Master Dwarf," Pippin exclaimed. " Remember we told you last night."

" My mind has repressed all that, mostly. I don't like needles… wait, you're an elf?"

" Yes," Legolas simply replied.

" Are you sure?"

Legolas looked at her strangely, stunned by her question, Gimli snorted.

" My lady, what do you think as elf is supposed to look like?" Gandalf asked.

" I dunno, shorter… like a hobbit. He looks more like a daoine sidhe."

" And what is that, Lady Katrina?" Legolas asked, a bit shocked that she thought elves looked like hobbits.

" A daoine sidhe is… I'm hungry," she said suddenly.

Aragorn brought her a plate with bacon, sausages, eggs, and bread. The others got their plates as well.

" Thanks," she said as she looked at her meat on the plate. " Do you have any syrup?"

" Syrup?" Frodo asked.

" Yeah, like maple syrup; it comes from trees."

" Yes we know what syrup is but why would you need it?"

" I like it on my bacon, it tastes good."

" She is from another world," Merry whispered to Pippin.

" Huh?" Katrina asked.

" You are from another world, or that is what is thought," Legolas answered.

" I see; well that does make sense. We don't have dwarves, wizards, hobbits, or elves where I'm from. So this isn't Earth?"

" This is Middle Earth, also known as Arda," Gandalf said.

" Middle, eh? Where are the other parts at?" They all looked at her oddly. " Never mind, so… whatcha all doin' out here in the middle of nowhere anyway?" She started to pick at her food as the Fellowship grew into an awkward silence. They looked nervously at each other. At first she did not take notice to them but then looked up from her food, " Well?" More silence. She stood up suddenly and started backing away.

" I knew it," she yelled, " You guys are some freaky cult or something, aren't you!? Just my luck, lost in the forest with crazy people. You're gonna sacrifice me aren't you, to some freaky-alien-behind-a-stupid-comet-thingy. This is bad." She started to hyperventilate some.

" My land I assure you that is not the case," Gandalf said, " Now come sit back down and finish your food while I tell you of our errand."

" Errand? Like laundry or taking out the trash?"

" Yes, something like that. Now come along dear." She slowly moved back to her seat, looking at the others cautiously. She sat down, the others moving to give her room; picking up her plate, she looked to Gandalf.

" Now Lady Katrina, we are on a quest…" he started, but Katrina tensed at the word quest and her expression changed. Legolas watched her suspiciously.

" Ummm, is there a Holy Grail involved or anyone named Monty Python?" she asked trying to keep the grin off her face.

" No," Gandalf said, slightly confused. She shrugged, " Continue."

" Our errand is one of secrecy, so you must understand our reluctance to tell you." She nodded and he went on, " We are accompanying a member of this fellowship to Mordor." He paused to watch her reaction; she just stared, waiting for him to continue.

" You have never heard of Mordor, milady?" Boromir asked.

" Have you ever heard of… Finland or Disneyland? I thought we established that I wasn't from around here."

" We must be sure that you are no spy," Legolas said.

" Moi, a spy… oh well," she took a bite of the bacon.

" Are you not going to defend yourself?" Aragorn asked.

She swallowed, " Why? I have no proof that I'm not a spy. You'll just have to take my word that I'm not. So, what is this Mordor place? Is it nice?"


End file.
